Ahtu
by
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“I suppose I haven’t told you yet about the frogs who come to sing in our valley.”, whispered Huma to her grandchildren. “Well, every year, after the ice melts, you can see frogs floating down the stream.”
“The cold water carries them past strange, dark trees until they swim to the shore where they decide to spend the summer.”
“Chahkol (chaak-oel), the wise old frog who lives at the bend of the stream, always greets them with a big, friendly croak as they float past.”
“One early spring day, two frogs floated past Chahkol. He greeted them, one by one.”
The first frog shouted, “I’m looking for a new home. Can you tell me what this place is like?”
Chahkol croaked, “Yes! But first, can you tell me about where you came from?”
“It’s an awful place. The stream floods and wrecks everything. It’s too cold in the winter and too hot in the summer. I don’t like how the bugs taste, and the noisy birds never shut up.”
The old frog thought for a moment and then said, “That sounds like this spot.”
And, with that, the first frog floated past the bend in the stream and out of the happy valley, having never really seen it.
A few minutes later, the second frog floated past and shouted, “I’m looking for a new home. Can you tell me what this place is like?”
Chahkol again croaked, “Yes! But first, can you tell me about where you came from?”
“It’s a wonderful place. Sometimes the stream floods, leaving yummy worms to eat. In winter, the ice sparkles like diamonds. In the summer, you can sit in lovely warm mud. There are many different tasting bugs, and the birds make beautiful music all day long.”
The old frog thought for a moment and then said, “That sounds like this spot.”
And, with that, a new frog swam to the shore of a happy new home, here with us.
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About the Book
It's a warm spring day in Bucks County. The lush forest is in bloom, and the young deer are eager to hear a story from their grandmother, Huma, about how the animals came to live in their beautiful valley.
She shares with her grandchildren a retelling of the Zen parable "The Move." Huma is wise because she is a Watcher, a special type of deer that use their wide eyes, tall ears, and thick noses to be clearly, deeply, and fully in the world.
From Stoic philosophers to Soto monks, Huma's message has been passed down for centuries to foster understanding, happiness, and resilience – all traits she hopes to instill in the little deer and all who hear her story.
About the Author
William Martiner grew up on the sandy beaches of Cape Cod Bay and had many adventures on the wide, wild ocean, in the dark and silent woods, and among the echoing canyons of New York City. Finally, he came to a still, green valley in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, alive with birdsong, where he wrote and illustrated this book.